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LA VERNE W. NOYBS.

HARVESTING MACHINE.

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(No ModeL). 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 LAVERNE W. NOYES.

HARVESTING MACHINE. I

Patented Oct. 6, 1885.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LA Yl-lltjli \V. XOYES, OF CHICAGO, ILLIXOIS, ASSIGXOR TO \YILLIAV.

DEERIXG, OF SAME PLACE.

HARVESTING-MACHINE.

Sf-ECIPICATIC'N forming part of Letters Patent No. 327,581, dated October 6, 188

Apphealiqrr filed October 27, 1884. Serial X0. 146,547. (No model.)

.To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, LA YE XE W. \ovns, a citizen of the United States, and residing at- Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in llarvestbig-Machines, which are fully set forth in the annexed and following specification.

The purpose of this invention is to provide a grain-carrying platform to remove the grain from behind the cutter-bar, which shall combine the advantages of the moving endlessapron platforms and of the stationary platforms wherein the conveying is done by chains, cables, or belts running above the platform or having teeth projectingthrough slots in the platform. The former class. requiring no interior machinery, can be made of light weight; and low-i. 0., thin-s0 as the permit the sickle to operate very close to the ground; but on account of the shrinking and stretching of the canvas apron due to atmospheric changes, and on account of the lack of durability of the material, platforms of this class are not altogether desirable. As heretofore constructed, the ot her class-the chain platforms, as they are commonly called-have been necessarily quite heavy and hard-running, and of too great thickness to permit a close cut, which in case of short grain frequently leaves the straw too short; to be securely bound by the automatic binders. I aim therefore by this invention to provide a chain platform which shall be at the same time light and thin, and durable, and free from variability.

A second purpose of this invention is to provide a grain-conveying mechanism which shall be so constructed as to deliver the grain at any angle to the cutter-bar, its primary applieat'ion being to a grainlmrvester having a binding mechanism which binds the grain in a position oblique to the line of the cutterbar, and so requires in connection with it means for turning the grain into such oblique position after it falls upon the platform.

Figure 1 is a plan of my platform and its driving-eonneetions, the upper sheath being removed to show the arrangement; of the conveying-chains. Fig. 2 is a plan of the plat form with the upper sheath in place, showing the arrangement ot'the slots. Fig. 3 is a transverse vertical section ma e at the line .1 .r on Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a vertical section of the sprocket and gear wheel which carries the eom'eyer-chains. Fig. 5 is an elevation of the pulley around which the conveying-chains passat the g ain end of the platform. Fig. 6 is a detail view of the chain which I employ a co'iveyer. Fig. 7 illustrates the manner of putting the several links of the chain together. Figs. 8 and 9 show in detail the form of a triptooth which I use on said chain. Fig. 10 shows a single chain in place around its sprocket-wheel atone end and its guidemlley at the other end. Fig. 11 is a detail view of an iron plate which forms the support of the gear and sprocket wheels which drive the conveying-chaius.

A is the base-frame of the harvester. A is a cross-beam o. the same. A 's the finger bar, formed of railroad iron, secured rigidly to the base-frame by means of the lugs or brackets (I a. A is a metal plate, which has the upturned lip or flange a, by which it is secured to the main frame. it has also the upturned lip a by which it is secured to the finger-bar, and the lip or flange a, by which it is further secured to the or ss-bar A. A is a metal plate fastened rigidly to the lingerbar at the grain end of the. platform. It, extends aeross that end, and is secured at; the rear side to the underside of the rearsill. A which is bolted fast also to the rear end of the .plate A.

which meshes with and drives the horizontal gear-wheel BLwhich in turn drives the horizontal gear and sproeketwheels I? and B", which last-named wheel drives the similar gear and sprocket wheel, I, which drives the intermediate gear-wheel, 1 which drives the gear and sprocket wheel B". Each of the wheels in this train, from B to B, inclusive, is formed and provided with the peculiar bearmg hereinafter described.

D I) D l) are pulleys having their bearings similar to those of the gear and sprocket wheels B" to ll, above mentioned and hereinafter described.

E 1*] 17: E are the cndlcss-chain conveyors, carried by the sprocket-wheelsB, 1 and B, and running around the pulleys D D I) D at the grain end of the platform.

I in F F l? I? F F F" are wooden strips or rails secured at their ends. respectively, to the plates A and A. They are formed and combined as shown, so'as to contain the grooves], in which the chains E I) E 1?) lie vertically and run edgewise throughout thelength of theplatform. 'The railsin which the chains travel relurningfrom the grain to the stubble end are cut away on their upper sides, their upper surfaces forming the ledges f, leaving small spaces below the sheathing in which the carrying-teeth may liehorizontally under the sheathing. On rails F and F, F and ,and F"thesheathiugG isslottcdlengthwise above the track of the chains moving from the grain to the stubleyend of the platform, the slots terminating at the grain end in the circular openingsy', into which the pulleys l) protrude flush withthe upper surface of the platform.

The carrying-chains E arej'made preferably of detachable links, and have the carryingteeth hung to their upperhorizontal sides, naeh alternate link as illustrated. but in practice only each third or fourth link being so provided. 1

I prefer the form of link illustrated in the drawings, which are designed to be made on wire of suitable size,and are formed by bending the wire first into the form of the letter U, but wit-lithe sidesE E tending toward each other, each end being then 'bent outward in thesanie plane to form the hooks E, and the lower part of the U being then bent over upon itself in a plane at right angles to that of the two branches forming the-lip or hook E The links are connected in continuous chain by inserting the two ends of one between the sides of the other, as illustrated in Fig. 7, and then turning and drawingjthem into line, the sides of both springing sutlieiently to allow the hooks E of the inner link to come into engagement with the sides of the hook-lip E of the other link. I do not, however, confine myself to the use of the particular form of link above described, but use any form provided it has one horizontalfside adapted to be thebearing and pivot The trip-tooth consists of the hub or bearing part 71, the carryingtooth It, and the heel or trip h". A preferable form is shown in Figs. 8 and 9, which represent a tooth made of maleable iron, the hub having the rift. It", so that it may be placed on the side of thelink, and then be hammered together to close the rift-and so be securely retained on the link. \Vhen the wire link above described is cmployed, I find as convenient to make the hub solid and to bore it to receive. the wire of the link, onto which I slip it before turning up the hook I on the end of that side on which thetooth is so hung. The carrying-tooth It, I prefer to make as illustrated, sloping slightly backward, so as to be relieved of the grain more easily at the stubble end, as hereinafter descr bed. It is of such length as to protrudc through the slots in the platform a distance sufficient to enable it to perform its function of advancing the grain across the platform. About two inches I find sullieient for that purpose. \Vhen the carrying-tooth it is erect, the heel It" stands down across the link in the same vertical plane with the carryingtooth. It is made ahoutas longas the width of the link, so that when standing erect it bears against the lower side of-the link, bit does not protrude below it nor prevent the chain running smoothly in its channel across the platform.

At the stubble end of the platformthe slots y are curved inward,and the edge of the metal bounding the same on the outside of the curve is beveled on the underside, so that when the carrying tooth it reaches this curved portion of the slot in which it is traveling it will be, by the curve and bevel, turned inward and downward, the entire triptooth tipping on the side of the link,so that theearryingtooth passesunder the sheathG and lies horizontally above and upon the s -irocket-wheel while the link is passing around the latter, and thereafter, while running to the grain end of the platform, slides on the let go or upper surface, f, of the rail in the space under the platfornrsheathing.

At the grain end of the platform I provide adjacent to each pulley I) the switch-plate K, which may be most conveniently secured by being fixed to or, as illustrated, made integral with the base-plate of thecup-bearing of the pulley. This plate has the tongue or switch-cam K, curved upward around the pulley. so that its point 1; stands just beyond the pulley grainward and overhangs the track of the heel h of the trip-toothII, which heel projects horizontally outward from the chain, while the carrying-tooth lies horizomally, as described. As the chain moves around the pulley at the end of the platform, the heel h" of the trip-tooth H is engaged under the overhanging point of the switch cam K, and by it is guided so as to rock the trip tooth on the link, so that its carrying-tooth I1 is brought: erect and protruded up through the slot as it is carried around the pulley. and so stands erectand drives the grain while it continues its course across the platform stnbblcward.

Itwill be seen that the grain carried by the carryin; teeth will be left lying en the platform at the point at which the teeth h with draw beneath the sheath at the stubble end of the slots 5 If, therefore, it is desired to leave the grain in any particular position on the platform, it may be accomplished by making the slots terminate in a line in the direction in which itis desired tha the grain shall be left. In the drawings, Fig. 2, the slots are shown terminating'in a line oblique to the cuttcrbar, the front slots being the longest and diminishing in length to the rear slot, which is the shortest. By this arrangement the grain is turned from the position in which it falls upon the platform, which is snbstantially in line with the direction of travel or of the sweep of the reel, to a position atrightangles to a line extending obliquel y backward and stubbleward, this position being the position which the grain must assumeat some stage of its progress toward the binder in those machines which bind and discharge the bundle obliquely behind the drive-wheel. I do not confine myself, however, in the use of the above-described devices to oblique delivcry of the grain, but I use the same structure, exceptthat I make the slots terminate in a line at right angles to the cutter-bar, for the purpose of eti'ecting direct delivery of the grain to the binding devices.

The structure of the combined gear and sprocket wheels and their bearings, and the structure of the bearings of the intermediate and other horizontal gear, and of the pulleys at the grain end of the platform, may be undcrstood from the description of one of the gear and sprocket wheels, the bearings of the remainder being precisely similar, and all said combined gear and sprocket wheels being precisely similar in their structure.

will now describe one ofthese wheels. As illustrated in Fig. 4, it is formed with a cupshaped web, 0, which has integral with it or rooted rigidly at its center the stud or spindle b, standing concentrically within the cupshaped cavity of the web and serving as the axle of the wheel. The sprocket-rim I make in the form of a ring, b", having the sprockets on its outer periphery and of such interior diameter as to fit closely the cup which constitutes the web of the wheclas described, and in that position I secure the said sprocket-riin to said web by suitable bolts or screws. Instead of being so formed they may be cast integral; but for convenience of fitting and dressing the gear I prefer to make them as shown and above described. The bearing for this compound wheel is the cup I), having the llange b, by which it is bolted to the plate A. This cup is of such outer diameter as to pass fr ely within the cnp'cavit-y, formed, as destrihcd, in the web I; of the sprocket-whccl,

and has the socket If to receive the spindle If.

The point of the latter lniake conical. and the bottom of the socket If is similarly shaped to receive the point. The socket is chambered, and the spindle isdiminished in diameter be tween the lnraring- 'ioints. and a cavity or chamber thus produced within the cup around the spindle is designed to be filled with Babbittmctal in the usual manner, and by this means the entire wheel is secured in its bearings.

The st ruclure. described, it will be observed, makes a self-oiling bearingthat is, a hearing which in itself constitutes an oil-holding cavity about the spindle bearing therein, thereby obviating the necessity for any separate provision.

vI clain i 1. In combination, substantially as hereinbet'ore set forth, the front and rear sills of the grain-platform and the plates A and A securing them together, the horizontal gear and sprocket wheels, all in one plane, havingtheir hearings on the plate A, and constituting a. continuous train deriving motion in series from the first, and the carryingchains running in horizontal planes carried by the sprock ct -rim on said gear and sprocket wheels, whereby the thickness of the platform is limited to the necessary thickness of the gear and sprocket wheels andtheir supportingplate.

- 2. In combination, substantially as hereinbefore set forth, the carrying-chains running in a horizontal plane, their links standing edgewise, and the trip-teeth pivoted on the upper side of the links and having the heels ll, as long as the width of the links, the rails having the-grooves on their upper faces for the chains, and the slotted sheathing secured to the upper surfaces of said rails, close above the chains, whereby the trip-teeth are kept; upright by their heels bearing against the lower sides of the links and the sides of the grooves, and not bythcir carrying-teeth bearing against the sides of the slots in the sheath.

3. In an endless convcyer foragrain-harvester, .for the purpose ofdriving the endless chains, the combined gear and, sprocket wheels having the cup-shaped web I), and the spindle b', rigid with the web, in combination with the hollow bearing-piece b, adapted to receive the spindle, substantially as set forth.

4. In an endless conveyor fora grain-harvester, the chain composed of the detachable links formed of wire, having the converging sides terminating in the hooks turned out;- ward in the same plane, and with the hooklip turned up in a plane at right angles to the plane of the two sides, in combination with the triprtooth pivoted on and adapted to rock over the side of said link, substantially as set In testimony whereof [lnu'eherenntoset my forth. hand, in the presence of two witnesses, at Chi- For the purpose of a separable chain, cage, Illinois, this 16th day ot'Angnst, A. I). the detachable link made of wire, having the 188i. sides (2 0, converging toward the open end and terminating in the hooks c 0, turned outward in the same plane with the sides 0 c, and hav- LA "ERNE \V. NOYES.

ing the closed end turned to form a hook on Attest: eat-h side at right; angles to the plane of the J. K. \Vns'r, m sides, substantially as set; forth. I Cims. S. BL'RTOX. 

